YuGiOh:Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus
by Puzzle Power
Summary: Taking place after the Pharaoh's inheritance and realization of his being, Yugi and Atem face new issues based on the balance shifted from their defeat of Bakura and the Dark Master Zork. It all begins with a letter...(Ch9 up! ReadReview. HTML fixed.)
1. Chapter 1: The Red Fog Of Slumber

The only noise audible in the great din of power against the trembling stone walls around him was Yugi's own heart beat. He cried out and yet could not reach out with his voice. There was too much to absorb, his eyes darted back and forth. It was space blanketed with darkness yet there was still enough of a dim glow for him to make out the silhouette. It appeared to be the wiser visage of himself, hobbled over on his knees with his hair in his eyes and his hands struggling to keep him up. In the faint light, liquids could be seen dropping from the figure. Bloods, sweats, tears; flickering sights of them behind the wind-caught cape.  
  
Was he begging for forgiveness? It seemed so as the lips of the Pharaoh widened back and forth, but it didn't seem like anything vaguely standard. There were beautiful movements of cursive woven into the air through the coughing, crying heap of a young man. The voice somehow pierced the air as an luminous spark.  
  
The attempts to breach the entrance of the area were finally successful, and Yugi was witness to a great light. It brought to light the presence of many stone tablets erected into the air as monuments in the dank cathedral of sorts. But the light grew too bright, and the voice cut off over the sound of nothing. Noise so quick that it took a moment for time and space to catch up. And then the sonic boom sounded.  
  
---  
  
Yugi cried out further still, but he could at last hear his own voice. The youth was a mass of sweat and tears himself, much like the persona of Pharaoh he had seen. The sound of cars passing back and forth sang him into relaxing, it was the breeze of the city. He slumped back into his bed, the jingling and jangling of trinkets easing him in his place. He was lavished in beautiful gold, but until there was a safer place to keep it he had to be.  
  
Against his small chest, beautifully outlined by the black cloth of his shirt was the Millenium Puzzle. Solving this had led him through many ordeals, and it had become a symbol of power and pride. Around his neck, somewhat awkward and constricting, was the Millenium Necklace. He had obtained this as a gift long ago in his passage to regaining the Pharaoh's memory. Behind him, as he lay on his back, he could feel the tiny metal cones point into his back. The Millenium Necklace had been claimed from a victory over an enemy that plagued him 5,000 years. At his belt, he had tied a small cord to the Millenium Ankh to fasten it in place. This was bestowed to him when the man known only as Shadi who had seemed to be timeless in age finally retired his calling. Similarly, he had recieved the golden Millenium Scale that was chained to his ankle as he slept. In his pocket, he felt the lump that reminded him of the sanctity of the Millenium Eye.  
  
For the six items he carried, he was doing the best he could to relax and let his guard down without letting them be easy prey. With so much behind him, there was no telling what was ahead. Precautions had to be taken, but one last piece to the set remain in the hands of a great equal and figure of his past.  
  
Yugi Motou drifted off to sleep hoping that Seto Kaiba would not let him down.  
  
---  
  
"Let yourself know what exists around you."  
  
Seto Kaiba opened his eyes, but it was as if he'd done no such thing. He strained himself trying to pick up any trace of light in the eternal void. He reached out with his fingertips, but there was nothing. He made countless efforts with what he deemed as a collected appearance, but eventually he grew tired and kicked at the air toyingly. He knew it wouldn't help at this rate, so he just cried out into the darkness.  
  
But before he could formulate any kind of question, the voice that he had heard spoke again. It wasn't so much a voice, as much as a jingling of metal that somehow seemed to work in the right way to form vowels and consonants.  
  
"The herald comes to remind the nature of all things."  
  
Seto had been through so many attempts at his mind that he shrugged it off, rolling away in the darkness from the direction he noted as the voice's origin. But it spoke again, and somehow seemed to be coming from in front of him again.  
  
"Let yourself know what exists around you."  
  
"Whatever. . ." Seto scoffed simply. He wasn't sure what was meant, and eventually he relaxed. He was in control of his mind, and the strain he placed on his eyes eased as they closed. There was no change in the amount of light let in, there was still only darkness. But when he drifted slowly into acceptance of the oblivion, it finally came into view.  
  
It was a great beast of a dragon, much like the mythical creatures in the days of old Egypt of who's culture drove him mad. He had been taunted so many times with tales of destiny that he couldn't take any more of it, even witnessing the origin of the mythology that brought him to his great conquest of gaming. It seemed to be a little synthetic, this beast. The Dragon itself seemed to glimmer like black onyx in the moonlight, but the rest of its body was plated in a very luminescent metal armor.  
  
"What are you?" Seto exclaimed, he was taken aback by how close it was to him, slinking slowly into view more and more. It moved very oddly, and the body it possessed seemed to be built if nothing else. Panelling much like a toy as opposed to a suit of armor, with joints that moved back and forth with no purpose but to show that they moved.  
  
"The herald comes to remind the nature of all things,  
  
be it Earth, Wind, Water or Fire,  
  
I come from the Darkness where it beckons and sings  
  
to warn you of the Light, my sire."  
  
"Warn me of the Light?" The Dragon was speaking in limmerick, and Seto was slightly lost. He wanted a direct translation, the true meat of the message. But this beast couldn't even be real. This was a hallucination from light sleep and overwork, so he didn't worry anymore about an answer to the question.  
  
"You see, the sun beckons the warmth of another,  
  
it reaches out in burning desire,  
  
it wishes to comfort this world, to smother  
  
all you know with its loving fire."  
  
"Where do I stand in all of this?" Seto, who seemed it obvious to himself that he was trapped in paralysis and sleep, thought it best to play along. Perhaps later he could analyze the dream and understand better the workings of his mind.  
  
"There are seven, but that doesn't matter,  
  
because they're just tools that clink and clatter,  
  
but there's truth to them if you look past the latter,  
  
that these are more than the means that I chatter."  
  
"Is that so. . .?" Seto still hadn't gained any ground, but at least he was starting to be able to see better. He still could not catch any glimpse of himself, but the aura of a solar eclipse seemed to shine around the Dragon, as if it blocked out a great light.  
  
"You aren't worried now, but I'll keep you in knowing  
  
That these symbols will tell you where he's going.  
  
You'll understand more when you see the sun glowing  
  
of the troubles and tragedy that the Dragon is sewing."  
  
"You mean you?" The way that this thing spoke, he wouldn't put it past the thing to speak in third-person. He wasn't paying heavy attention to anything it divulged either, so it was of little weight regardless.  
  
"I am a beast, but I'm not the Sun.  
  
You shall know of whom I talk, the One!  
  
He comes from the sky to settle his fun,  
  
And ensure that in his way there are none."  
  
"I'm sure you're quite worried about that. Thank you for letting me know." He smiled and drifted slowly into the void. The Dragon faded out of view, but he wasn't concerned. He could rest, the odd limmericks of that which sounded like metal had faded into the distance. He finally felt himself fade, the last resonating drop of the experience gone.  
  
And then it whispered, quietly into the wind. It shocked him, because he thought he had parted completely from the behemoth.  
  
"Let yourself know what exists around you. . ."  
  
--- 


	2. YuGiOh:Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus ...

"Mail's here!"  
  
The old voice of Solomon Motou cried through the air, and Yugi did his best to fasten the belt of his pants as quickly as he could to go down stairs and collect it. Now he was almost ready to leave the house and peruse the city with his friends on the somewhat dreary Sunday afternoon. He had slept later than expected, and would probably have to take the train downtown to make up for lost time. But at the cost of 200 Yen, he was easily sacrificing a good hotdog or round of arcade games.  
  
His shoe laces were undone, but he wasn't worried. The boots were a little large and awkward for his tastes but they adjusted his height in such a way that there was now only a marginal difference between the heights of he and his darker self. As he had grown older the last years or so since he initially solved the Millenium Puzzle in the beginning of High School, he had noticed the gap being bridged between the age of the Pharaoh Atem before his death and Yugi's own age. Now he was a third year student, still a little short, but climbing the ranks steadily.  
  
But still, as confident as he was, Yugi collapsed when a miscalculation in balance hit him. He was less decorated now, the only things in plain view was the Millenium Puzzle. The other items were tucked away in his backpack. But as he fell down the stairs, tilting in such a way not to land on the awkward ornament on his chest, his bag came undone. Nothing seemed to be a miss as he stared at it. Time seemed to stand still as he fell in what seemed like slow motion, but eventually an object came hurling out. It was a golden ball marked with the same symbol the other Millenium Items were.  
  
There was an aged cry, and Yugi could only imagine that they eye had clunked his grandfather in the head upon it's descent. As Yugi finally caught himself, he turned to his the familiar figure downstairs. His grandfather clutched the side of his head, only ratifying Yugi's suspicions. But there was something terribly off. The letters had fallen free of his grandfather's grasp in the commotion, and had fluttered into different spots. However, the Millenium Eye had stopped dead onto one of them, pinning it down. It spun quietly, emitting a quiet whisper as it scratched at the paper in its circular motion.  
  
Yugi's first impulse was to fix his things, and he did so as he walked down stairs more cautiously. He picked up the eye, which offered no resistance in his rotation, but then choked a breath nearly dropping it again. He had to do things cautiously or he might get excited and trip again, so he placed the eye into his bag before picking up the letter that was weighted by the sphere's presence.  
  
"Whatcha' got there, partner?" His grandfather was collecting the other pieces of mail without much complaint about the collision of the ball and his head. Yugi adjusted the dress shirt he had on over his usual attire, it was just a plain white button-up that he had rolled the sleeves up on. He did this nervously, trying to pretend nothing was wrong.  
  
"Oh nothing, it's just an advertisement about a new game shop. I think someone's trying to put you out of business again, Grandpa'!" He was supportively cheerful, but he adjusted his bag again and slid the letter into his front pocket hoping that his grandfather didn't notice the familiar emblem on it. He'd open it later in the presence of his comradery where he could resolve things step by step.  
  
"You know what, I've gotta' get going! I'm burning daylight, but I promise I'll check out this new store and let you know of the competition!" With that, he didn't give his grandfather time to catch up with any response. He darted out the door and made a brisk walk down the quiet lane for the subway station four blocks away. Downtown, Anzu, Jounouchi, and Honda must have been waiting for him, as well as anyone else who had shown up for the one free day of the week in the eastern land.  
  
He still couldn't believe who the envelope's return address was from. Had the sleeper finally awoken?  
  
---  
  
"Pegasus J. Crawford sent YOU a lettah'?" The blonde haired youth Katsuya Jounouchi exclaimed in a mix of terror and renewed aggression. After everything that they had been through involving the man called Pegasus, he wasn't sure that anything good could come of that name. Of course, after everything had been said and done, the misled man had lived up to his word. . . But was that enough to simply accept an invitation to America from him?  
  
Jounouchi pulled some of his blonde hair out of his eyes, it had gotten longer but somehow still held the same position it always had. Anzu had cut it in the back when he started to show signs of an upward curl, but he had let the front hang down in his face as always. It gave him the element of surprise when the hair would fall out of his eyes and he would be dead glaring into his opponent's face.  
  
"Yeah, it's an invite for 'Yugi Motou and guests' to come over to Industrial Light and Magic Inc., the corporation that makes Duel Monsters. Apparently, they want us as guests for the unveiling of three new sets that are coming out." Jounouchi noticed how appealing Yugi was trying to make this seem, as he carefully gestured with each word darting his eyes back between he, Anzu, and Honda. They had been through the entire ordeal with him, and returning to see a new set unveiled was right up Jounouchi's alley.  
  
While he was never a first place winner in any big leagues, Jounouchi was still attending local events around the locale of Domino City. While his Kansai accent was a little thick and he occassionally slurred the words of the cards, he still was revered for being somewhat of a local legend. This was also very true because Yugi never played in any local tournaments. Somehow, his skill was kept fresh without playing ever at all, and Jounouchi hoped to tap into that timeless skill one day.  
  
He looked towards the sky, which was thick with clouds baked in the sunlight. For the past two days, it had been clouded without rain. A grey sky that seemed to glow eternally. He wasn't really concerned. As a rebellious youth, he often found himself running in the rain, so if it ever did come, he'd let it. Still, to get out of Japan during a bad weather season like this. . .  
  
It was the summer, but it felt like the school year still. Anzu stilled worked at 'Burger World' serving traditional American meals, and Jounouchi had extended his paper route much further than usual. Yugi worked at his grandfather's game shop, and Honda had become the bus boy at a local French restaraunt. With the group split up from the work schedule, only on a Sunday could they all gather at one time without being overly exhausted. The opportunity of going to America and being together seemed alright, and with a new set in mind. . .  
  
Ever since Bakura had used the entire "Threat Of The Demon World" set against Yugi in a daring clash in a ficticious world inside the Millenium Puzzle, Jounouchi was ready for a change. Everyone was using demon style decks, and there was little offered for his warrior deck currently.  
  
"Well?" Anzu poked at Jounouchi's side, he instinctively jerked back. It seemed that with all eyes on him, the blonde rogue had been in thought much longer than he intended. Trying to compensate for his lack of activity, he zealously through a fist in the air.  
  
"Alright, let's go to America!"  
  
"We already decided that we were going Jou', we were asking if you wanted to go out for Pizza tonight."  
  
---  
  
She stared at him, and she wondered and she longed. Why wasn't he showing his face today? Was he hiding from her? Did he feel it wrong to put others at expense for his own personal needs. He didn't noticed her locked gaze on him, his hair was in his eyes as he ate the pizza slices quickly. He had picked up habits from Jounouchi like eating so fast that you would choke, but it was nice to see them getting along.  
  
Anzu sighed behind the glass of soda and eased herself into the back of the leather booth. Somewhere behind those golden locks were darker eyes, that burned with poetic resolve. Now that she had really seen him, she longed to see him again. That fated challenge between Yugi and "Atem" that had been destined for all time.  
  
He lost. . .  
  
But he lost gracefully, beautifully.  
  
Honda and Jounouchi exchanged jokes, Yugi choked down another slice. Where he put all of that food was beyond her, for being such a slender child and all. She scolded herself quietly with a sigh. Ironically, Yugi wasn't that much younger than her. He was a fast student who advanced quickly, but he was still only a year or so behind. Maybe there was hope in him that could not be found in the darker half.  
  
But she couldn't get her mind off of it. How could she ignore Yugi if he was the body, the possessor of Atem? They were the same person in some respects, and yet she only pined for one half. She couldn't fall for them both, that would be playing the field too much. She couldn't fall for just the one, that would trick the emotions of the innocent.  
  
"So a new set huh? You actually think you can go anywhere with that, Jou'?" Anzu tried to change the subject to get her mind off her real problems. There was no reason to dwell on it with success for her friends oncoming. Honda chimed in something to add to what she said, but she was phasing out of the plane of reality they were in, and had to focus to stop.  
  
"Yeah, I guess so. . . I mean, I gotta' lotta' good cards already. . . Let's see. . . D. D. Warriah' Lady, and Freed the Matchless General! And then there's Gearfried da' I'on Knight. . ." Jounouchi counted off generals and soldiers on his finger tips on and on until Anzu had lost all interest. His mouth moved but no audible sound seemed to come out. She swayed back and forth, taking another sip of the soda to seem animated in such a way that she was there, with them. Aside from that, she just pretended to listen, and dwell further on her problems.  
  
"You still play too Anzu, right? Kaiba did give you da' hookup a while ago when we got back from Alcatraz Island." Anzu snapped to attention. She forgot about that. After talking with Seto Kaiba about dealing with loss and how helpful he was playing his part in the scheme of things against the darker urges of Malik, he had rewarded her with a plethora of cards.  
  
"This is the only way you're going to get close."  
  
She remembered his words well, the way he actually smiled when he handed her them. It was a documented reduplication of that which had been used upon the defeat of the members of the Big Five by her hand. She had done him a favor, and he had done her a favor. A way of relating to that which she wished to be closer to.  
  
"I don't really tinker around with it anymore. It's alright. . . You know, Dark Magician Girl and all that. I don't have time to play on weekends, you know I have dance class." She smiled batting Jounouchi on the head with his straw, her soda glass finished quickly from nervously sipping at it.  
  
"Yeah, I don't think you can call Dance Dance Reva'lution 'Dance Class', Anzu." She smirked, it was true. Ever since the last summer and the clash against that cheating scoundrel, she had begun to excel at her own game. Yugi had once spoke to her about the value of games when she was purchasing a pack in the family game shop just as an excuse to see his face. As the conversation began to rile up again about work anecdotes and card games, she tried to remember his words, which weighed as if he were his other self. . .  
  
"You see, people play games for different reasons. Like Duel Monsters! The intuitive nature of Duel Monsters has driven men mad, towards their goals, and even into bankruptcy. There are many who are trying to make it big, who are trying to be good enough to impress themselves, or to impress others. There are those who play because they need to feel like someone, and those who are walking someone else's path. There are those who are looking to waste time, and those who think anything else IS a waste of time. Everyone has a reason that's good enough for themselves to be here, so make sure you have yours. I play this game for the sole purpose of friendship, the reason why it was created. To interact with a mind of someone else, to meet a new friend and not just win, but win a new friend in the process. "  
  
Huh. . . Thanks, Yugi. 


	3. YuGiOh:Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus ...

It was one week later that the group had gotten together. Yugi carried nothing on him but his clothes and his backpack, which he had stowed a few boxes of extras and his own deck as well as his troop of Egyptian treasures. Jounouchi lugged a duffle bag, but the way it rattled, Yugi could definitely hear the sound of cards in boxes. Honda had driven them to the airport and was away parking the car, Anzu was with him. So that left Yugi and Jounouchi sitting in the airport terminal.  
  
"Jounouchi. . ." He rose stretched out his arms, wearing the dress shirt again from last week that he washed. Doing so caused the sleeves to fall slightly, but he adjusted them and then went to search his bag and pulled out a small black box. He shook it toyingly, the sound familiar to the two of cards trapped within.  
  
"Do I wanna' play?" Jounouchi responded such shaking in response a box he retrieved from the top of his duffle bag, zipping it back up and setting the bag aside.  
  
The two sat down amidst the bustling traffic of the airport shuffling their cards, then presented the decks to each other smiling. They hadn't played in quite a while, and usually there was so much stress on the line when they did. Now they could just enjoy a casual game, but it flew so quickly!  
  
"Summon Beta!" "Now I'll attack with Jinzo!" "Search out from my Apprentice Magician the Magician Of Faith!" "Trap Hole ya' Dark Magician!" "Monster Reborn!" "Imperial Ordah'." "Set a monster in defense. . ." "Seven Tools Of Da' Bandit!" "Flip over Cyber Jar!" "Torrential Tribute, buddy!" "Horn Of Heaven, offering my Witch Of The Black Forest to kill your D.D. Warrior Lady." "Whatcha' gonna' get?" "Breaker the Magical Warrior." "Summon Marauding Captain to bring out... Maraudin' Captain!" "Dark Hole!" "Oh come on, that was cheap. . ." "Well I won fair and square." "Offering monsters from Magical Scientist to launch for Catapult Turtle is NOT a victory. That's like. . ." "That's like, overkill?" "Whateva'. You're lucky that this wasn't more heated." "Well it was nothing notable, next time we'll pay a lot more closer attention to how we play, then we'll see if you can beat me, Jou'"  
  
The two just had a friendly game, with Yugi victorious. There was nothing notable about it. It wasn't heated, it wasn't important, it was just playing for the fun of it. After the shakes had gone from the lack of danger involved, they were able to play casual as the friends of many years that they were. Doing so, they wasted enough time for Anzu to arrive with Honda in tow.  
  
"I see you guys are certainly making an embarrassing scene." Honda laughed, shaking his head. He was the oldest of the group, certainly not a gamer. Hanging around with Yugi and the others, he always seemed to laugh off the weight of the game they played. Yugi smiled at this, the fact that Honda could somehow always keep a level head. Anzu seemed to be smiling as well. Everything seemed to really be working out.  
  
"What exactly are you slackers doing here?"  
  
---  
  
It was all four members of the 'Trouble Brigade' right before him. The occassional guests that they brought along were missing, but the blonde, the girl, the strong man, and Yugi himself all lined up at the same gate he was supposed to depart from. Seto had recieved a letter from Pegasus J. Crawford requesting the attendance of the president of the Kaiba Corporation for an unveiling of a new line of Duel Monster cards. Industrial Light and Magic Inc. was a large partner and trustee with the Kaiba Corporation, so he accepted the invitation. The fact that it was personally signed by Pegasus unnerved him.  
  
Pegasus must have woken from his coma. Over the past few years, the timeless man had lay in a hospital bed after what the wild card youth known as Ryou Bakura had done to him. Yugi had never really gone over the specifics, but apparently his love for the Millenium item had driven him mad during the separation. He didn't really care about anything, he was indifferent to any sort of tales of magic or mystery after all this.  
  
Still, the curt executive had taken a liking to the golden object strapped at his belt. Constantly, it was questioned by various security administrations when he attended corporate meetings and soirees, but his value in the business community allowed him to override any investigations. He felt that there was some value to the Millenium Rod, simply that it was an heirloom from his ancestors. While he was of Aryan coloring, more and more was Seto starting to recognize his roots. But he felt bound by no chains to them, so he simply carried it in the best esteem he could.  
  
But still, after palming at the object on his belt in thought, he mulled over the real matter at hand. Yugi and his company were also invited to this unveiling, which means it must have been some publicity stunt rather than anything of value. He dismissed any thought of being surprised, and continued to scowl down at the foursome before him.  
  
"Hi Kaiba!" Yugi was being formal, calling him by his last name, which did make Seto smile. At least there was some respect from that small figure, although he could tell that there was a lack of weight in Yugi's voice, therefore he was dealing with the youth alone.  
  
"Kaiba got invited, too?" Jounouchi had exclaimed the obvious, as he usually did. The consistancy of annoyance that the blonde was probably the only thing Seto could place money on him for. Time after time, Jounouchi had always shown up as a dark horse favorite in many famous tournaments until eventually he found a place in the sun unto himself. Annoying, but somehow skilled at being annoying.  
  
"Of course, this event is brought in part to you by my own corporation. It's our partnership with Industrial Light and Magic that brings such success to Duel Monsters." Seto nodded to himself. The dying breath of Duel Monsters was saved when his company invested heavily and was able to steer the company clear of bankruptcy after Pegasus had gone out of commission. To see him back in action would certainly be interesting, but it was eventual, as the company was never seized from the sleeping soul's possession.  
  
"Yeah, whateva'. Don't think you own dis' game jes' because you make a buncha' holo-projectahs' and what-not." Jounouchi shook a fist, which ironically held a deck box in it. At least the vigor of the lesser duelist was constant. Kaiba still attended National tournaments often, recognized for his talent he was allowed to join at will. He had actually been delivered a loss or two, but often came out on top. He blamed it on the nature of things. What goes up must eventually descend down.  
  
"Think whatever you will, but this plane is boarding." With that, Seto walked off without paying a second glance. He felt a slight tension as he passed Yugi, and when he turned his eyes over to the younger male he noticed the darkness in his eyes. He wasn't staring at a timid housecat anymore, but directly into the face of a lion.  
  
---  
  
Anzu slouched back in the coach seating. It was going to be a long flight since they were crossing the Pacific Ocean. Luckily, Pegasus's company was directly on the Pacific Coast in the American 'state' of California. She always thought of America as being divided into provinces, so she had to make sure she said 'state' in her mind. Luckily, she spoke well off English as she'd been practicing for when she would ride off into the sunset to New York City for dance and the big time.  
  
She and her friends weren't stationed too far back, and she could actually see Seto in first class working on something on his personal computer if she leaned in, but that would require leaning over too much against Yugi who was quietly sleeping. He talked sometimes in his sleep, but she assumed it was just he conversing with the other half. Trying to relax, she placed on headphones and tried to fumble with the in-plane radio setup.  
  
As Anzu finally found a good station, she felt her hand clutched tightly. She was shocked, and nearly jerked back until she turned over to realize it was Yugi. He looked more worn, darker in nature, and she could tell it was Him; Atem. But he was still asleep, and perhaps the change happened in his sleep on a normal basis. She had no way of knowing, she tried to stray from odd things like watching him sleep.  
  
"Herald. . . Of the Beginning?" She focused on his words now, her headset had come unplugged when she jerked back, so amidst the sound of rising air currents she could hear him. Was it a strange dream? It sounded like such if he were to utter a phrase like that. It could even be a card that she didn't know about with the thought trains that his mind followed.  
  
"But the world is okay. . . The way it is. There's no reason to start over." Anzu leaned in closer, the concern in his brow really made her infatuated with his words. What was he saying. . . There's no reason to start over? What an eerie phrase that loomed of reckoning or something. Her family was Christian, like a great deal of Japan had turned, and she was reminded of phrases from the Bible the way he spoke.  
  
"No! You don't get it! There's no reason to start over!" With these words he tightened his grasp on her hand and snapped awake. He looked disoriented, as if he had come in from a bright day into a dark room and couldn't see because of the lingering of light. Finally, his eyes focused on her and he trailed his gaze from her face to their interlocked hands. He began to try to form a sentence, but just stuttered inaudibly.  
  
"Don't worry about it, it was just a bad dream." She comforted him, pulling her hand free and playfully messing with one of the large spikes his hair seemed to keep in. She smiled, and it seemed to ease him as he nodded to her words in such a way that the notion of it being a dream had never crossed his mind. Yugi stared out into space, turning away from her, nodding still.  
  
"A dream. . . A dream . . ." And he slowly eased back in his chair, and faded back to sleep. While there was daylight outside, it was night-time in Japan. She excused him from passing out so quickly, but something did eat at her. The way he was so shocked in his wording when he was asleep seemed to be important. Important things happened to Yugi, he was a special boy. He was two special people, in the truth of it all.  
  
She turned to the window, but watching Jounouchi snore wasn't of much interest. Anzu replaced her headphones and fit the tip back into the opening on the armrest. Finding a station, she tried to drift back to sleep, repeating Yugi's words quietly to herself to try to figure them out.  
  
"There's no reason to start over. . . Huh. . . " 


	4. YuGiOh:Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus ...

---  
  
By the time Yugi awoke, they were hovering over land again. The sky was fading, and he could see the city lights of Los Angeles begin to pop into view. He hadn't been to America since the Grand Prix tournament, so it was nice to come back. It wasn't much of an ordeal, they all packed light since they would only be staying for three days. They simply waited their turn to get off the plane and exited together, following other passengers down the narrow corrodor that connected the plane to the terminal gate.  
  
But even so, it was a shock to see him standing there smiling as he shook hands with Seto Kaiba as if nothing had happened between them. He was even wearing the same suit in which most of the pictures of him were taken; red with gold trim. The only difference that Yugi could actually see on Pegasus J. Crawford was a slim black band trailing from under his hair across his forehead. When Pegasus turned to see him, the silver locks took to the caprice of the air, and Yugi could see an eye patch where the scarred eye must have been when the item departed him.  
  
"Yugi-boy! What a pleasure to see you again, isn't it?" He was so zealous, Yugi couldn't help to smile at the familiar face. The four of them; Yugi, Jounouchi, Honda, and Anzu; had really looked into Pegasus's life before leaving the castle, and they knew that he was just an honest man trying to do the best he could. He was misled, but it seemed as if that shadowy bane that he was to them had disappeared. Jounouchi beside him slowed to a cautious halt, but he still nodded in recognition to Pegasus. Honda slumped over Jounouchi's shoulder waving, even though he didn't know Pegasus well. Anzu thoughtfully bowed in Japanese tradition.  
  
"Good to see you, Mr. Pegasus." Yugi looked up, the high-toned English came from Anzu. He was taken aback that she spoke so naturally. He felt put to shame; he wasn't really a worldly traveler, so he never worked on his linguistic skills. Pegasus seemed to smile at it as well, but he shook his head as he did so waving her off.  
  
"You don't have to worry about it, I speak Japanese, you know." Pegasus did reply in a clear Japanese wording, but his zealous American accent did show up. Yugi hadn't heard many Americans speak Japanese, but he was still pretty sure that Pegasus must have sounded overly zealous to other Americans as well. The tall man nodded to the group simply and led them through the terminal. He seemed very much at home, so he must have traveled a lot in his day. Yugi could only assume such, from the stories that Shadi had told him of Pegasus's trips to Europe.  
  
Yugi could hear the discontent in Seto's mutterings as they were all led to the same limousine. As an executive, Seto must have thought himself above simple gamers from his homeland. Pegasus seem to have a different idea in mind, so they all shuffled into the limousine together. Yugi was shocked when he noticed the rear-view mirror of the car. The same servant who had been at attendance to Pegasus since their first meeting was still at the wheel, his hair was greying a little more than usual and his mustache a little fuller, but he was still recognizable.  
  
"So how have all of you been, hm? It's been a good two years, hasn't it? You all look so esteemed now instead of the bunch of kids wandering my chateau years ago." Pegasus was quick-worded but long-winded, still a social butterfly when in a good mood. Seto turned to stair out the window, but Jounouchi took to the call to action.  
  
"Pretty good, I'd say. Yug' here's been famous eva' since your Duelist Kingdom tournament, and he's built his way up from there." Jounouchi eggingly nudged Yugi to speak up about everything, but Yugi should his head to try to deter his friend. If Pegasus knew about the conquest of the Millenium Items, or was even reminded about Ryou's actions he might become upset. He tried to handle the situation as vaguely as he could.  
  
"Well, yeah. . . There's been a lot of big famous tournaments and everyone has had it in for me ever since I beat you!" He posed embarrassingly, shrugging his shoulders and scratching the back of his head. Pegasus no longer could read minds without that eye of his, so he would have no way of knowing that all seven Millenium Items were in the vehicle. Seto's very formal looking trenchcoat seemed to conceal the Millenium Rod well, so Yugi just had to trust it to luck at this rate.  
  
"Is that so? Well, being the game's creator I'm sure you caused a ruckus. I'm sorry there's been a slow in production, it's been about half a year since anything new or grand came out. You see, I plan everything in advance. Well, now that I'm back in the fray again I can start doing that again. We're about to finish the entire 300 series!"  
  
They swapped stories until they finally arrived at a new mansion that Pegasus must have procured at some point. The drive was long, involving leaving the bulk of the city for the green hills of the area until they reached the new establishment. There were many cars parked at the entrance, and it seemed that whatever Pegasus was planning, he was planning to enact it this evening.  
  
---  
  
"Aren't they beautiful?"  
  
The ball room was fairly packed with a variance of spectators from reporters to investors, and of course the motley crew of Yugi and his friends. But there was a silence in the air between two important figures on opposite sides of the room. Yugi swung his head around at the sound of a broken glass, and turned to see Seto with the same blank stare at the projection screen.  
  
There were two screens on either side of Pegasus as he spoke at a podeum into a microphone so that he could ellaborate on his art and inspiration to the entire crowd. To his right, the screen bore the image of the lavish soldier covered in golden armor with an glimmer of dawn in the background. To his left, a crystal dragon made of something dark covered in an opposite silvery metal with the aura of an eclipse behind it.  
  
To Yugi, the Dragon was completely unrecognizable, but the Soldier was in absolute cognition in his memory. It was reasonably similar to one of his favorite Ritual Monster cards, the Black Luster Soldier; but it carried itself with much more danger and esteem. Just like the one who spoke to him in his dream. . .  
  
Yugi slowly slid his gaze back to Seto, but he was gone. As he turned back to the where Pegasus stood giving announcements, there was also an absentee figure. Looking back to the projection screens against the marble walls, he no longer saw either the Dragon or the Soldier, but other card art that was being displayed. There were some interesting pictures, but nothing interested him, he had to find the two that were now missing from the scene.  
  
Shuffling his way to the back of the grand ball room near the food and drink tables that were left unattended from the fascination with the images Pegasus's equipment depicted, Yugi examined the contents of his backpack. Seeming a little out of place already amidst the established and wealthy figures, the boy didn't see any harm with carrying his backpack around. He already was misplaced.  
  
The Millenium Ring at last made it's way to the surface of the contents of the bag, and he focused his thought into it the same way he would the Millenium Puzzle. This item was used to locate the others, and if both Seto and Pegasus had stormed off, they were most likely in the same place.  
  
Quietly meandering through the crowd to the other end of the establishment, down quiet halls and past familiar staff that had come from the original Chateau, Yugi had made his way to a dead end that had nothing but a large mahogany door where it ceased to go on. He could hear unrecognizable shouting, and while he hesitated to open the door, something inside him rushed forward to fling it open.  
  
"What's going on? I want answers from you now!" Seto had Pegasus by the collar, lifting him slightly in the air with a sneer on his face. There was a frantic feeling in his Seto's eyes, the boy could tell that his rival of some time was very disturbed by the same imagery that Yugi was. . . Or was that the issue? Yugi didn't recognize the Dragon, and yet Seto was standing dead opposite it as Yugi was the Soldier in gold.  
  
"I'm telling you! They were just images and ideas I had in my coma! I was partially aware! Doctors say that it's possible!" Pegasus freed his arms violently from Seto's grasp, and shoved him back. The glimmer in Pegasus's eye against the chandelier reminded Yugi of the more ambitious and vindictive nature that the artist carried within.  
  
"They are masterpieces and the focal point of our upcoming 306 set: 'Controller Of Chaos.' In English, we are calling them Black Luster Soldier: Envoy Of The Beginning and Chaos Emperor Dragon: Envoy Of The End. In Japanese, which you might understand more. . . Chaos Soldier: Messenger Of Creation, and Chaos Emperor Dragon: Messenger Of The End." Pegasus matted out the wrinkles in his suit, but then gestured to two painting encased in glass of the two monsters. They appeared to be the originals of the artwork to be depicted on the card.  
  
Yugi stepped forward and pressed his hands against the glass of the Chaos Soldier's prism prison. You could barely see the eyes under the helmet, but the face was relatively similar to the original monster that Yugi had used. It was Azure with eyes that seemed to pierce the gaze of anyone who stared directly at it. As his eyes focused, he felt himself linger between existances as the spirit within tried to get a glimpse as well.  
  
"So you're telling me we both dreamed of this monster?" Seto pointed at the Chaos Emperor Dragon's painting with a shaking hand, obviously distraught by the existance of the painting. Yugi glanced over at the what seemed to be a focus of much of the ruckus. The dragon was somewhat eerie; it stood on hind legs in some symbolic gesture of pride. He found himself entranced with it, as he steadily made his way towards the other painting to stare. It was interesting, and certainly new compared to the Chaos Soldier's depiction.  
  
Seto reached at Pegasus's collar again, but he was diffused and sent sprawling back by another shove from the older gentleman. The frustrated youth crashed into Yugi, the backpack coming undone again as Yugi himself was forced into the weight of the puzzle. He let out a heave and closed his eyes.  
  
The Millenium Ring jangled into view, and Pegasus hopped back from the sight of it. The Millenium Scale tipped slightly out of the bag, and rolling out of one of the weighing plates came the Millenium Eye rolling out into view. It stopped before Pegasus with the symbol that each golden object possessed pointing directly at him. The two stared at each other for a long time in silence, until a crystal clear voice cut through.  
  
"Pegasus, I have come back here to give you back the eye so that you can master its foresight and tell me exactly what it going on."  
  
--- 


	5. YuGiOh:Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus ...

He stood clearly upright, keeping a trained eye on Pegasus and Seto the whole time as he set to the task of collecting the items from the ground and shoving them forcefully back into his back. He adjusted his belt, through his bag over his shoulder, and continued his forceful gaze at the frightened heap of Pegasus.  
  
"You. . . It's you. . . The spirit of the Millenium Puzzle." The silver locks pressed against the wall as the artist lay in shock, pointing and gasping. The figure just smiled, pulling a few of the blonde tresses free from his face. But there was no sense of denial in his expression. Walking with heavy steps, one foot after the other, the dark figure leaned down and picked up the center of attention. The Millenium Eye was warm in his hand, and he gripped it tight.  
  
"I've been having dreams lately you see. The boy has witnessed them with me. I'm sure the shock on Kaiba's face is proof that he's been having the same." The watchful gaze turned to Seto for a moment, and then darted back to the distraught artist again. He began to take step after step until finally Pegasus and he were only an inch or so apart. The one that was called many things; Pharaoh, Atem, Yami; lifted up the black flap over Pegasus's eye.  
  
The empty pit of flesh was too much for Seto, he turned and coughed something up. Pegasus shouted and struggled, but for some reason had no effect on the strength of the dark figure before them. He forced the metal sphere into the socket so that the symbol would face out, and then let the flap close over it.  
  
At first, there was nothing. . . And then a slight feeling of eclipse began as light poured from around the patch, eventually the patch itself let light pour through. At one point, the symbol on the eye itself was burned like fire through the black cloth, but soon after the entire thing incinerated and the black cord keeping it around Pegasus's head fell to the ground.  
  
There was silence for a short time, and then an animalistic howl. Pegasus clawed at the ground, sinking as he lean against the wall into a sitting position. He tried to cover his eyes but he still screamed in terror. Tears streamed down one cheek where a natural eye still functioned. He chanted cries for an end to the horror, but eventually died down into simmering wimpers.  
  
"What was it?" The ancient king leaned down to look Pegasus straight on at eye level. The sadness in the man's face was terrible, but forced himself to stutter out one word to describe his terror.  
  
"H-H.... Horus."  
  
---  
  
"Describe it."  
  
Anzu along side Jounouchi helped Pegasus into the bed. The celebration of the new sets were still going on in the ball room not more than a hall away, but she had seen Seto, Pegasus, and Yugi run off at the start of the festivities. Although, she could tell it wasn't Yugi anymore. It was Atem, that's how she thought of him.  
  
Pegasus rolled his head over, lying on his back on a sofa against the wall he had the opportunity to avoid the piercing gaze that Atem had. Anzu was still trying to catch up on everything that happened. Apparently, that restless dream that Yugi had been having on the plane plagued Atem, Kaiba and Pegasus also in various forms.  
  
"I said, describe it."  
  
"It was. . . Constantly changing. . . It was growing. It started off harmless enough, but it grew. And I could see the stars, and the earth. It was so hot. . . It burned so much. . ." Pegasus sounded like a madman, a homeless traveler who had taken in too much ale. Atem stood at the end of the bed, arms crossed and eyes focused on Pegasus's turned face. He seemed adamant in getting a crystal clear answer. Jounouchi stood silently, leaning on furniture that probably cost more than he was paid in a year. Anzu smirked at the idea of him leaning too hard and being in debt to Pegasus, but she calmed herself and paid attention to the situation.  
  
"Clearer, slower."  
  
"It was. . . I can describe it. Give me some time and I'll paint it. But. . . It was hot. I could see the stars, and the planets. Our planets. I could see Earth from behind a curtain of fire. And I saw it. . . And I knew what it was. I knew what it was called. Yugi-boy, do you know what the symbols on the Millenium Items represent?"  
  
Atem shook his head, he was still distanced from his own culture because of the double life that he lived of a small Japanese boy who enjoyed games. He had been returned his name and much of his past, but his cultural heritage was still slightly faded. Pegasus leaned up in his position, pulling back the hair in his face to make clear the Millenium Eye.  
  
"In Egyptian Mythology, there was a legendary warrior named Horus who lost his eye. This symbol is the eye of Horus. It is represented on all of the Millenium Items. I'm not really sure which tradition they are following when they do this, or why. . . If only he were here." Pegasus gestured towards one of the many paintings in the room. Anzu didn't seem to recognized the eastern gentleman depicted, but Atem nodded to it. The cold set blue eyes against the dark skin denoted he was from Egypt much like Isis and Malik before all of this. . . But his gaze was as piercing as Atem's, maybe even more so.  
  
"Shadi is retired, he wanders the Earth no longer." Atem and Pegasus exchanged glances, and then turned away to stare into space. It seemed they both felt for the man they spoke of, and missed his presence dearly. Anzu had never heard the name, nor seen the face before, but she was understanding of the lack of guidance present.  
  
"Tell me this, Yugi-boy. . . Why do you have all of the Millenium Items?" Pegasus let his hair fall back into his eyes, as maybe a way to camolflauge the Millenium Eye. Anzu decided he was unwilling to part with it again, so he didn't want to keep it in Atem's attention too long.  
  
"They are rightfully mine, and I defeated the Dark Master who threatened it." Atem scowled at his own words, and Anzu remembered the ordeal and the Dark Master that Ryou Bakura's darker side served to further his own motives. The hideous plum beast that was tackled by the combined powers of Egyptian Gods and the fallen allies of Seto and Atem's efforts 5,000 years ago. She shook a little herself as she thought about it.  
  
"That is it then. Yugi-boy, do you understand the game of I-Go? It's a Japanese game, also known as Wei'chi. Players take turns placing stones to take territory to further their advantage over their opponent. You see, the Egyptians tapped into a very large game of I-Go. But there were 6 different colors of stones instead of just Black and White. That's where Duel Monsters comes along, I reduplicated the ancient magic that was in a sense a technological reduplication of the war between the balances in nature. I look into your mind and I recall the experiences, and I thank you for permitting me to do so. You've done a grave thing destroying the Dark instead of keeping it at bay like you were supposed to."  
  
"What do you mean by that!?" Atem took a step forward, the momentum of the Millenium Puzzle swinging after him. Anzu could hear the other items quietly bounce off one another in his bag, and she glanced over to Seto to see the Millenium Rod tucked firmly into a strap on his belt. Five thousand years of Egyptian history lie in this room, shifting balance back and forth from owner to owner.  
  
"I mean that now that there aren't any black stones on the playing field, there's a great deal of territory that various other stones could take other. Light, Fire, Earth, Wind, Water. These are the remaining elements represented in Duel Monster cards that are also prevalent in the massive territorial battle between the 6 elements. You've upset the balance, and Horus is coming because of that."  
  
"No, this can't. . . Why didn't you warn. . . Why. . ." Atem stammered out his sentences, obviously running himself in circles. He couldn't find the right question to ask, there seemed to be so much at hand already. Anzu reached over to put a hand on his shoulder, but his nervous movements made him pull away instinctively.  
  
"Ah, I see that my workings on Ra, Osiris, and Obelisk affected you. Do you know what the Egyptian God monsters really are?" Pegasus seemed too calm in this, while Atem was distraught. Anzu could feel the tension between the two, but she kept silent like everyone else in the room. Seto seemed to hang on each word with great weight, Jounouchi was confused by it all as usual, and Honda tried to make himself understand the mess that was at hand so that he could be his usual collected self.  
  
"They are an attempt in Egyptian technology to extinguish the threat of any of the 6 elemental powers. Did you notice on the cards that they were marked Divine? I mark each element so that in a Shadow Game these monsters can be clearly affected by the natural balance of the universe."  
  
"How do you know so much!?" Atem finally had an outburst, he was confused as to how Pegasus could know so much obviously. Anzu tried to hone in on what was going on but she was starting to run in circles just as Atem seemed to. She wanted to comfort him, she wanted to help him. . . But now didn't seem like an opportune moment where she could offer any constructive support.  
  
"You awakened each of the Millenium Items when you regained your memory. They have grown in your care. While initially yours, you should know that they drift from owner to owner through the course of history as to fulfill certain preordained events."  
  
"Tell me more about Horus." The tension in the room seemed to fade to a sense of defeat. There was nothing that could be done except to allow Pegasus to reach out into the universe and see all with his Millenium Eye. It was interesting, because Anzu always thought the Millenium Necklace was a bearer of the past, present, and future. . . But somehow, Pegasus's gift with the Millenium Eye brought so much to the table that everyone gather round just to listen.  
  
"Horus, like Zork, is a divinity of Fire. I cannot describe the horrors I felt witnessing him. He is power without need for any ambition like the Dark things you have fought against. He does not bargain, he does not wish for anything. He will move in now that the Dark does not threaten him. I'm not sure what can be said about any of the other four elements. You've laid waste to the Dark for a while, Yugi-boy. . . That's a big pair of shoes to fill."  
  
"What can be done?" Atem glanced at the grandfather clock at the other end of the room, it triggered Anzu to do so as well. They had spent about an hour listening to Pegasus since they had first arrived in the private study. No one would come looking for them as the evening still had a few hours to it left before closing time.  
  
"You'll have to wait for things to become tangible. I don't know quite what I saw. I only know what I've studied and what will likely come from what I see now. I'm not a fortune-teller, I'm an artist and an archaeologist." Pegasus finally rose to his feet, and while there was a depressed expression on his face he still managed to crack a smile at everyone in the room who had come to listen to him. He clapped his hands twice as a method of snapping everyone's attention.  
  
"Come, the night is still young." 


	6. Chapter 6: Tailoring For The Moment

Yugi didn't sleep that night. By the time everything was over, Seto and he were provided complementary samples from the new 306 series. He stared at the primary prize he'd been given as it glowed faintly in the moonlight. He was still trying to make sure he understood all of it, so he read the text aloud.  
  
"This card can only be Special Summoned by removing 1 LIGHT and 1 DARK monster in your graveyard from play. Once during each of your turns you can select and activate 1 of the following effects: (1) Remove 1 monster on the field from play. If you activate this effect, this card cannot attack this turn. (2) If this card destroyed your opponent's monster as a result of battle, it can attack once again in a row. 3000 attack points, 2500 defense points. . . Light element. . . Light. . . Element. . ."  
  
With the notion of rest far behind him as late as it was in the evening, Yugi poured his cards out onto the table. He tried to understand where he stood in the great board game of the universe that Pegasus told him about. With each element representing a different force, he needed to try and identify with his natural calling.  
  
The Magnet Warriors of Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, as well as their collected Valkyrion were all Earth elements monsters. So had been Celtic Guardian, and Gazelle the Mythical King Of Beasts. This was the same in even the original Black Luster Soldier. But Yugi was already starting to see a problem in his deck. If he were to accomodate the presence of the Black Luster Soldier, he needed more Dark and Light types.  
  
On the Dark side of the spectrum, he was already pretty well off. The Dark Magician, the Skilled Dark Magician, the Apprentice Magicians, Magical Scientist, Breaker the Magical Warrior, The Witch Of The Black Forest, Cyber Jar, and Sangan all accomodated his darker needs; and they were already present in the deck. But the Earth side was cluttered, so he carefully began to set aside Earth cards and introduce a few new monsters into his deck that would seem to fit.  
  
"When this card battles another monster, after Damage Calculation you can remove the opponent's monster and this card from play. . . 1500 Attack points, 1600 defense points. . . Light Element. . . Level 4. . ."  
  
Jounouchi had always ranted and raved about the power of the D. D. (Different Dimension) Warrior Lady, so he put that into the pile of cards he designated "Monsters going in". With her decent attack power and ability to remove monsters from the game, it seemed like she was worth a shot. If she didn't fire off her ability, then he could remove the card from the grave for the Soldier he was making haste to accomodate.  
  
"Negate the effect of a Monster Card that specifically designates this 1 card as a target. 2400 attack points, 1900 defense points. Light Element, makes sense. . . Level 6. Alright."  
  
The Chaos Command Magician had helped him several times before, and he decided that this card might be useful in fighting back the power of the various monsters coming in later sets. It was protected from being the specific target of a monster's effect, and with its great attack strength for it's speed, it was perfect.  
  
"Each time you or your opponent activates 1 Spell Card, put 1 Spell Counter on this card (to a maximum of 3). You can remove 3 Spell Counters from this card to draw 1 card from your Deck. 0 attack points. . . But, 2000 Defense points. Level 4. . . Well. . ."  
  
Yugi grimaced as he set aside the Mystical Elf that had saved him on so many occassions and placed in the Royal Magic Library into the pile of cards he was arranging for use. The Mystical Elf was a great card, and it even had stronger attack points than this monster with the same defense. So did the Giant Soldier of Stone card; but Yugi was doing his best to accomodate a new style of play.  
  
He tossed in the Magician Of Faith that he had always had since the days of Duelist Kingdom that had been given to him by Anzu. She was such a nice girl, just giving him such a useful card, but they had been friends for so many years so he wasn't surprised.  
  
The last monster two cards he threw in were Injection Fairy Lily, who's weak attack strength could be modified from paying a great deal of your lifepoints, and Kycoo The Ghost Destroyer, who could protect his graveyard from being altered while interfering with the enemy's plans that involved the card graveyard.  
  
As for technical cards, he took out the Fissure spell card he used for a card that had been used against him enough for him to get the point, Ring Of Destruction; a trap card that destroyed a monster and took the attack out of both players lives. And lastly, he removed United We Stand for Dimension Fusion, a card that allowed him to special summon any monsters removed from play at the cost of 2000 life points.  
  
Shuffling the cards together, there seemed to be a great synchronization to them. Playing pretend games with himself, he would fight his oppponent off 'til he could either beat him normally, or swamp him with the power of the Black Luster Soldier. Even more new cards would be revealed tomorrow, and Pegasus made promises to treat them to some of each.  
  
The next 3 days would be spent here in America. It's a shame that they weren't in New York, Anzu would have been so happy to see the big city she always dreamed of. But perhaps they could still make the best of the town. As Yugi thought of shops that sold Duel Monster cards at cheaper prices than even his grandfather, since the product was American after all, he slowly started to pack up his cards in their new order and place them back in their respective boxes. He fastened the tie on his backpack and tied it to his arm, lying back in the bed. Slowly, but surely, the worry placed on his mind faded and he drifted back to sleep.  
  
--- 


	7. YuGiOh: Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus ...

He lost his breath. In all the memories he had partaken of the Pharaoh, there was one notorious creature missing. There was one Monster card, or Ka, that he had never seen. He had uncovered the tragic origins of the Blue Eyes White Dragon and Dark Magician, but somehow this wise figure depicted against a hexagram had evaded the story. But there he was, a stone jewel embedded in the design of where his forehead was carved into the many story high tablet. This stone jewel was of particular interest to Yugi because of its massive iridescent presence. It called out silently.  
  
Yugi began to hear the song again uttered from Atem's tired soul, and rather than focus on his other half, he turned to the door and shielded his eyes in preparation. After a few moments, the door did in fact collapse under the weight of that which pushed behind it. The light didn't seem as bright this time, or maybe it was because Yugi knew it was coming. He tried his best to focus on what was happening, but instead of having his gaze flooded by a tempest of luminous light there was a cloud of feathers that came from the entrance. The presence of them smothered everything out, and he swiped at the air trying to push the massive feathers out of his view.  
  
The dust settled, and he finally saw the two of them locked in battle. They must have been the size of the mecha he'd seen in his grandfather's game store, only without the minimal scaling. A leather bound, azure- skinned magician with long flowing ebony hair with his jeweled staff locked against the sword of a great faceless warrior with angel wings. Yugi stared into the helmet of the great warrior yet saw nothing.  
  
The shock of the images finally left him, and he covered his ears trying to drown out the horrid screeching of the two metal instruments against each other. He could hear another noise, but it shocked him. Their lips moved, but he couldn't hear any discernable words. It wasn't like when Malik spoke the Egyptian hieratic that took a while to click in his mind as something Atem knew; no, it was completely different.  
  
When the lips of the familiar Magician Of Black Chaos spoke, it sounded like a very masculine opera choir, thousands of voices singing at once. When the angelic warrior spoke, the dark mass under his helmet began to glow in morris code. Yugi still couldn't make out a face, but the sound was enough to drive him made. It was so indescribable, but mostly similar to the sound of water falling into a metal funnel. That horrible hollow sound repeating itself over and over in some kind of language.  
  
The opera grew more violent, and the hollowed sound more deepthroated. The two great titans pushed back from each other using the force of their weapons against one another. They grimaced at each other with a long pause, but the sorceror waited no longer as he charged the angelic soldier who came from beyond the temple to do harm to the Pharaoh.  
  
Yugi was reminded to turn to Atem. Arms crossed, the Egyptian king stood shaking his head in solemn judgement making it seem as if something very wrong had happened even in the sorceror from the stone coming to his aide. He wasn't relieved that he had been spared, and the tears continued to pour from his eyes. Through the battle, Atem quietly walked as if it weren't there. He had narrowly missed being flattened, cremated, and decapitated, as he strolled with his head hung low in doubt.  
  
Atem looked to the sky outside, and Yugi ran to follow his oblivious counterpart. He turned to the sky too but shielded his eyes from the pain. It was too much, too much; he cried out in horror similar to Pegasus, but he did not have the same inspiration. The sky was completely clouded except for one part where it opened up. Golden gates had been flung open, and a staircase of ivory led from the heavens down to the earth.  
  
It was war.  
  
---  
  
"Yugi!"  
  
He frantically tossed around until he was upright, snapping his eyes open once so. He was out of that nightmare, awakened by the sound of a familiar voice. It wasn't calling out his name, but he still had to answer to it by obligation. They could tell now, however, so he curled up resting his chin on his knees so that Anzu could see him in the moonlight.  
  
She was the only other person in the room, he noticed the door was cracked. He must have caused quite a ruckus for her to have woken. Or perhaps, maybe she couldn't sleep either from the aftershock of the series of events that had taken place as of late. There was a chair near the bed, so Anzu pulled it over and made herself comfortable. She was still in her clothes from the night before, but the nouveau riche time piece mounted on the wall showed it was close to dawn.  
  
"What did you dream about this time?" She was forward, but with reason. This was the second time she had caught him in a horrible fit while his eyes were closed. Could he tell her of the memories he was experiencing? He tried to put words to what he had seen, but his breath was short and he only now realized he was panting when he tried to choke out an explanation.  
  
"A battle. . . A great. . . war. . . with. . . the heavens." Anzu looked shocked at his words, her faith showing. The thought of a war with the Christian god must have seemed much more intimidating to someone who thought his power almighty and absolute. But Atem hadn't witnessed any godly presence, just a war against a race of faceless men from the sky. Maybe he had phrased things wrong in her presence.  
  
"Not the heavens. . . The sky." He tried to compensate for what he had said in her presence, trying not to worry or offend her in the same blow. He positioned himself to sit up properly on the edge of the bed facing her, and did his best to smile. He had to ease her troubles, she was always very concerned with him. But in truth, if anything happened to her or any of the friends he had met from being the boy known as Yugi Motou in his double life, he would be devastated. They knew that, Yugi knew that, Atem knew that, and Anzu did so as well. He knew this, as he took her hand and looked into her eyes.  
  
"Please, don't worry about this. It's my responsibility, and we've gotten through everything thus far." He didn't know how much consolation the words he offered gave, but she did seem to nod to him and smile at his attempt. She nodded to something she must have been thinking, and stood up pulling free from his grasp.  
  
"I'm going to sleep, and you try to catch up on your sleep, too. We're going down to Chinatown tomorrow in the city by the famous Hollywood Walk of fame, so get ready for some walking, alright?" Atem flinched at the words "Chinatown". Every city he had ever been to had a district known as Chinatown, and it was usually littered with scam artists and even fake Duel Monster cards. He hoped that an upscale city like Los Angeles would provide a better taste of four thousand years of Chinese heritage.  
  
---  
  
The outting wasn't terrible. Pegasus had sent them on their own that day in company of a limousine, but they left it in preference of walking and seeing the sights first hand. There was certainly something for everyone. Anzu and Jounouchi both ogled the footprints of famous American film stars, and Honda did his best to flirt with American women in his limited English.  
  
The accent was so thick that he was blatantly obvious, Yugi had to keep himself from laughing at Honda and give away the scheme. Usually Yugi played the kid-brother who was looking for the various shop and Honda would strike up a conversation with the beautiful woman who would lead them there. He was a little embarrassed that one of his abilities that he added to the group was his lack of height, but he didn't mind because of how humorous it was to see Honda stutter on his L's and V's.  
  
There came a point where there was enough time to see one film at the famous Chinatown theatre of the city, and Anzu was going to be left alone in her rogue choice to see a story of star-crossed lovers opposite Jounouchi's choice of the violent tale of a valiant soldier in combat in some war long past. Yugi made the choice to go see the film with Anzu so she wouldn't be left alone, but he felt slightly uncomfortable. He caught her staring several times, and he was unsure why. The film in itself wasn't too interesting for him. Something subtitled in English and spoken in French, too languages he knew very little about. He faded off in his boredom, reluctant and unhappy about letting Anzu down as company.  
  
---  
  
"You obstruct justice. We will kill you, and then we will kill him. If you leave our sight, then you shall be spared but other than that, your actions will be beyond the grace of God."  
  
Yugi was in utter shock as he lurched around from the sight of the gates in the sky opened to turn aroun and clearly understand the hollow voice of the faceless soldier. From the looks of him compared to others, he seemed to be their highest decorated lord. The azure-skinned Sorceror curled his lips into a smile, and began a monologue as he swung his staff at the faceless angel time after time.  
  
"God? I want nothing to do with it. You are a supersticious race who hide in the sky because you think you are superior. If you didn't want this to happen you should have come off your high horse! You oversaw everything, yet did nothing. We sealed away Zork because he was a threat to mankind, and I've grown affectionate to them. What do you plan do you plan to do about it honestly? You can't do anything."  
  
Their weapons parted, and the angel took it the time to slap away the sorceror and point at where Atem and Yugi had been. Yugi noticed he was not the target of the great lord, and turned over in horrible shock. Atem had unsheathed the blade of the Millenium Rod and was using it to defend himself from the staff of a very feminine looking angel. Her outline seemed simple and beautiful, but with silver hair pouring in clumps into her eyes, Yugi couldn't get a good look at it. She pushed down on her staff, seeming not at all clumsy in the flowing robes she wore.  
  
Behind him, Yugi felt the force of a great gust of wind, and he was knocked clear over into the sands. But from here he could get a better look at the angelic assailants face. Atem had jumped to the ground for cover, but the angel was swooped up in the grasp of the larger lord who seemed to dominate them all. In his human-looking grasp, in the clutches of a very adequate hand, it cried out.  
  
"You have disturbed the balance by sealing away Zork. You risk the decimation of all of this worlds beings by plunging us into an era of Chaos. There are things that exist that you could not even comprehend in this universe. We offer one of our most diligent acolytes in the service of Darkness to ressurrect the balance of all things. We hope that you will not disturb this ever again beyond your given jurisdiction."  
  
From these words, all of the angels that flew down from the sky in order to enact their revenge of some sort travelled back towards their origin at the golden gates. Yugi was astounded to see the soldiers of the war very similar to his collection of Duel Monster cards, but it would make sense that the Pharaoh would awaken all of the Ka spirits in order to fight this war. The Dark Magician, stumbled towards them reaching out, but fell into the sand nearby. He was alive, as far as Yugi could tell, so the boy directed his attention back to the great lord of the sky.  
  
The faceless archlord had let go of the holy assailant of the Pharaoh. Atem at the time of this memory probably didn't recognize the being, but Yugi did. Yugi stared in shock watching half of the skin of the angel grow dark and lifeless. One of the wings even became that of traditional demonry. He recognized the destiny that was being portrayed here even if no one else would understand. This was another memory of the Pharaoh, and it all made sense now.  
  
An angel, cast down from heaven and dedicated strictly to the darkness, down from the sky fell the first avatar of Ryou Bakura.  
  
---  
  
"I know it was sad, Yugi, but you don't have to cry."  
  
Atem awoke with tears in his eyes, understanding now what had gone on in that time of long ago. It was his fault, he had saw fit to defend the peoples of the cradle of civilization by doing away with what sought to destroy them. It was he who had defeated that evil in time. It was he who had not heeded the words of the faceless men from the sky. It was all his fault.  
  
It isn't your fault, Atem. You didn't remember. I didn't know either.  
  
He wiped the tears from his eyes and did his best to improvise a boyish smile much like Yugi. Still, from the aged look on his face, Anzu could tell it was Atem as she began to address him as such.  
  
"I didn't know the Pharaoh had a heart, too. You speak French too?" She poked him in the side as if it were something endearing to see the Pharaoh cry at the end of a simple tragic love story. Everyone was standing or in the process of leaving, but the two stayed in their seats. The crowd moved beyond them and thinned, by and by. Atem searched his mind for something to say that would make sense.  
  
"I. . . I don't, but you could feel the earnest feelings of the two even though everything that happened." He hoped that he had summed up the story well, thinking back to the times of scholars who wrote similar tales to pass the time and entertain the weary. Anzu recieved this answer well, and rose before him offering a hand to help him up from his weak condition. He questioned if she knew he'd had another dream.  
  
When Jounouchi and Honda came into view cheering and excited about the various instances depicted in their film of choice, Anzu pulled free from the interlocking grip they had on one another. Atem looked up at her, but the face of understanding was replaced by a coy smile as she waved at the two mutual friends.  
  
"Man, you should have come with us, pal. I guarantee what we saw was much more excited than what you ended up with." Honda teased, as he ruffled the spikey arrangement on Atem's head. Jounouchi was attempting to imitate a stunt but ended up slipping onto the marble floor of the theatre's lobby. Atem smiled, and in this relaxation he fell back into his deep sleep allowing Yugi to awaken and spend time with his friends. 


	8. Chapter 8: Bargain With The Devil

"Don't you understand? Can't you understand? Won't you understand? Will you understand?"  
  
Seto Kaiba had returned to the void of his dreams. He must have dozed off during one of his brainstorming sessions in Pegasus's mansion. There wasn't much to do, he'd had his fill of America years ago and could do nothing but lie back in bed and think of new developments for the Kaiba Corporation. But instead, he had fallen asleep and was now in the presence of the Chaos Emperor Dragon.  
  
"It's coming, that's known. The eye has shown, Do it, alone. Will you once it's grown?"  
  
"What do you mean, once it has grown?" Seto finally caught on to something of interest in the crazed metal sing-song rhymings of the great dragon in his dreams. Obviously it had to be referring to some repressed memory, or else he would not be having the same recurring dream all this time. He wasn't even phased by the "hocus-pocus light show" of the evening prior, and deemed this just a psychological interpretation of past, present, or perhaps future.  
  
"You saw it once, the Darkness is gone, Believe it, you dunce! That this isn't dawn.  
  
I am the herald, and this is the end, I am the herald, I'll tell you my friend.  
  
They'll be war, without true balance, they'll be more with vengance and valiance.  
  
But I know what you can do, I'll tell you but will you hear me through?"  
  
Seto didn't have much of a choice. Forcing himself to wake up wasn't doing anything. This annoying beast was getting worse and worse a nuisance to him ever since he had slipped the card into his deck. It was probably just a coincidence that all this was having, that is what he told himself. He nodded to the Dragon and prepared himself for more versing.  
  
"I'll tell you what, you can pick your side, You can act like a mutt, or in one power confide."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Obviously, there was some hidden message here that Seto wasn't understanding. Rushing through school to become a great businessman might not have been the best idea, because now he began to regret having skipped a few lessons here and there that he thought of as a waste of time.  
  
"I've got a use, so that we can tame, but we must call a truce or we'll end up the same.  
  
Before you ask why, I'll go ahead and speak, I understand now, you think me as a freak.  
  
But listen now, and listen well, Listen how? Let your heart swell.  
  
Let yourself know what exists around you. You'll feel it, you will. Let yourself know what exists around you. You'll feel it, your will."  
  
Seto just closed his eyes trying to ignore the beast, and doing so he felt a warm comfort. He could somehow relax now and without any thought of the Chaos Emperor Dragon that mocked him in his dreams. Such lovely, lovely warmth. Well, it was really a heat. A warm fire that was overwhelmed him like a sauna but allowed him to be at ease and think of nothing else. Such lovely, lovely heat. It almost burned a little, but he thought it just needed to be gotten used to, like the temperature change in a spa's waters.  
  
It did burn slightly. It burned. It burned like wildfire, what was he thinking of giving into the relaxation? It was so hot, he opened his eyes to see the void begin to erupt in flame. Everywhere, there was fire, and the Chaos Emperor Dragon stared in down craning its long neck to see him eye to eye.  
  
"I'm going to be straight, if you don't come to my aide, then I might grow some hate, and let you burn by what he's made.  
  
There's a pit in his gut, you see, he's almost ready, there's nothing to stop him, everything will be steady.  
  
He'll come here, then you will see, you'll know fear in his childish glee.  
  
But he we can tame, if we work with each other, I see we're the same, we'll work with one another.  
  
Help me tame HIM!"  
  
And there was a manic laughter that drove Seto mad to the point of shouting. He found himself awake in his bed with his hands at his own throat. He flung them aside as if they were being thrown like foreign objects. Why had he done this? Was he trying to threaten death upon himself from his subconcious as a sense of motivation? Or was there something to all this nonsense about. . .  
  
". . . Horus." 


	9. YuGiOh:Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus ...

Pegasus had agreed to meet with Yugi under one condition only, that he speak he also have a chance to speak with the Pharaoh. This in mind, Atem was the one who sat down and discussed things in the study again with the glass encased paintings, various new portraits of mythical beasts from today's event added to the showcase. Atem pointed at the Dark Magician Of Chaos, bringing it to Pegasus's attention, and Pegasus nodded in return.  
  
"I've seen this being in my dreams before, and I was inspired to portray it in this light instead of his own dominion." Pegasus pointed at the image of another painting showing the Dark Magician Of Chaos flying towards the viewer's perspective away from a massive explosion of light. This reminded Atem greatly of the battle he had witnessed so many years ago between the great faceless archangel and his own sorceror liege-man.  
  
"Pegasus, I have a question. . ." Atem trailed off trying to formulate his words properly, but he didn't need to. He just looked at Pegasus and nodded, permitting the man to read his mind. It wasn't so much that he trusted the ambitions of the artist any more than he did long ago, but he knew that now he could easily overpower his former nemesis. Besides, at the time, Pegasus was merely attempting to awaken Atem's powers. That turned out to be a good cause.  
  
"Besides you rolling over whether you trust me or not, Yugi-boy. . . I understand your predicament. So that's who that troubled foe was who robbed me of my eye so long ago? More than just a meager boy, I suppose. Allow me to explain what occurred in your dream, alright? You see, you witnessed a great battle between your own archaic sorcery and the heavens. When we think of the powers of the light, most people turn to the Christian god. I'm not sure about how much of that actually is concrete, but I do know that mythical beings known as Angels do exist."  
  
Pegasus poured a glass of wine, offering it to Atem. The youth kindly shook his head, he didn't want to be swayed into any sense of false relaxation. Alcohol wasn't going to make the situation any easier to take. He did sit down in an office chair that was situated at a drawing table, tilted it so that he could see Pegasus, and continued to listen to the man's words.  
  
"I know they exist because it would only make sense. Why let sorcerors exist and not let angels come to pass, eh? What you witnessed must have taken place after you beat that Zork fellow. I was wondering where I got the inspiration to paint that monstrosity. He always unnerved me, that's why I gave him such an interesting effect. The ability to destroy everything or even himself in a blindly rageful process. The user who made a deal with the Dark Master would have to risk everything to access his powers, fitting yes?"  
  
Pegasus was alluring to the fact that the ritual monster card Dark Master Zork's effect was utilized by rolling a dice. So not only would a user have to offer the very souls of monsters to bring forth the great demon king, but risk everything to harness its unholy charity. Atem understood the analogy, so he nodded along.  
  
"Now you see, as I said last evening. . . Everything in the universe has a balance. The mastery of mythical creatures through sealing them in stone tablets was quite a development, one that I even recreated through my Egyptian God monsters unfortunately. Vicious cards, cards with teeth, you know? Ha, but continuing. . . That was a symbol of the overseeing Light restoring power to the darkness strictly for balance concerns."  
  
Pegasus really seemed to be enjoying the fixation that Atem had on his words, Atem could get that from feedback from the Millenium Eye's watchful gaze. Pegasus could see, but Atem wasn't entirely blind. Ryou Bakura's existance was the property of an offering to put Zork back in power, but why?  
  
"Why, you ask? Because the Light and the Darkness represent an order in nature. They are the controllers of the chaos, just like my new card set is known as. There is no real ambition for the Earth, Water, Wind or Fire to attend to. The Water wishes only to keep secrets and defend its own shores. The Earth consists of you and I, our kind. Conventional animals and men who are acting off of an enlightened form of instinct. The Wind is just simple caprice, I wouldn't worry too much about it unless something really came up. . . But. . ."  
  
Pegasus stopped. He wasn't pausing to read Atem's mind again, there was a lack of the low spiritual sound involved in the use of the Millenium Items. Did Atem percieve a nervous nature in Pegasus? He did wipe sweat off his brow before the Pharaoh, perhaps feeling the notion of wishing not to be the killed Messenger.  
  
"But. . . The Fire, that has a goal. It wishes to destroy, it's raw power seeks out all that it can eliminate. It's just cocky really. It wants to ruin the fun of everyone and everything, if you know what I mean. Can't have any kind of peace in flame. I mean, it's enchanting. . . The heat of a fire, and often we artists use fire as a metaphor for intensity in love and passion. . . But fire is a dangerous thing, and the actual elemental player of the universe that is the Fire is something else entirely."  
  
"And that is what Horus is? Like that faceless angelic soldier. . ." Atem was beginning to understand the feelings of distress and blind revenge that the angels must have wished. The order that they sought to maintained had been broken blindly by the a quest of selfish valiance by the king of the world of the Earth. That is what Atem was after all, being the highest king of men at the time meant that he was acting on behalf of the balance of Earth. It was strange to think that the elemental name and the planet's name were the same; that this strange game of territorial conquest would only exist in this world.  
  
"You're somewhat correct. That is why the Earth element is called such, and technically it is the weakest element in the entire universe as it's territory is only here on this simple planet. But don't think our world is the only important one in the universe. The sky is the gateway to the stars, as well as many other things. You think of things as being magic, but I recognize this art as technology. I just wasn't clear of that until I spent years in slumbering thought."  
  
Confront the pair, force one to. . . . . . ensnare . . . powers.  
  
Atem stood up so quickly that the chair was knocked over. Pegasus stood up as well. Their gaze darted around the room looking for the source of the voice. It was so faint that Atem could barely make out the words, but it was there. It was obviously so if Pegasus too had jumped to attention. Atem could hear the Millenium Eye cry out into the darkness around them with an immense ring, searching for everything. Yugi didn't have such kinds of abilities through his item. A flash of inspiration took to him however.  
  
He took the Millenium Ring from his bag, which was known as the great seeker of things. It pointed in a direction that was level to he and Pegasus. Not up a hill or beyond the moon, not deep below the ground, but on their level and in this building. Pegasus's movements became stealthy, and he opened the door slowly for Yugi to follow the path of the trinket. They crept, one foot after the other as slowly and silently as they could down the hall. Eventually they happened unto Seto Kaiba's room.  
  
And they listened. . .  
  
And listened. . .  
  
And listened. . .  
  
But no sign of any voice came again. Atem felt uneasy from memory of the horrible sound it was. It reminded him of the "Slinkie" toy in his grandfather's game shop, but it was audible in terms of speech. They were words. They were concrete words. There weren't any signs of struggle or stir in Seto's room, so they crept quietly in the dark unlit halls back to the study that Pegasus and he were speaking.  
  
"Do you know what that was?" Atem finally spoke when he felt that he could be at ease to do so. He felt that whatever that was could be listening, hiding from them in the darkness waiting to "ensnare" as it commanded. Whatever it was, it was speaking to someone else, and it seemed to be issuing orders as well.  
  
"I'm not sure. It. . . I'm not sure." Pegasus obviously seemed troubled by it, but he wasn't letting on anything more than that. Atem had filed the Millenium Ring back into the backpack he carried with him everywhere, and adjusted the weight of the Millenium Puzzle against the formal-looking schoolboy jacket he had. It was the only thing he had that was presentable to a formal event series like this.  
  
"I suggest we rest on it, and whatever dreams you may have, study them well. If you remember, then I'll remember." 


	10. YuGiOh:Duel Monsters The Eye Of Horus ...

It seemed to be complete sensory overload to the young man.

Metallic huffing, horrid phrases of music, and the sound of metal against metal ringing in his ears. But this time he witnessed it all from a different perspective. Atem was in the horrid realization that it was not through his own eyes that he saw this battle. And there was something different about it all. While the sky hung with an angered glow, it appeared to be grassy knolls instead of desert sands.

Shocked, he tried to take it all in and understand it more, but in doing so, Atem awoke. Still, he was separate his own body. This was unusual, before all his dreams had caused him to awaken in his own body. There would be a stir of emotion from the Millenium Puzzle around his vessels neck that would evoke the ancient king into being. But this time, an indiscernible force of observation, he could see that the pyramid charm displayed no signs of any such energy. It was something inside the bag that the younger boy had always carried with him that was instilling these images into his mind.

_He must have slept late_, Atem surmised as he peered out the window. The sky was showing the full properties of day, quiet sunlight poured into the room. Trying to unravel the mystery of how much of the day was actually lost, Atem's gaze wandered around the room until he found the charming antique clock that was part of the guest room's ensemble. The clock detected early morning, but it was impossible. This kind of light only came from the noon sun.

Voices heard, he could see Yugi wake to greet them, and filed himself into a quiet role of observation to uncover what was going on.

---

"Come on, what's it say? What's it say?" Jounouchi, among others, were crowded around a portable television in Anzu's hands, who eyes were darting back and forth between the information displayed. Yugi wasn't quite sure what was going on, he had seemed to just faded to sleep when the commotion had woken him up. Even then, it seemed like he had lost time from the appearance of day outside.

"It says that it's just affecting areas around this time zone, and a little to the East and West as well. Some kind of phenomenon." Anzu's translation seemed loose, but everyone seemed to take it as enough news to understand the situation around them. Honda and Jounouchi raced to a nearby window, where they were joined by strangers Yugi had only seen before at the festivities. Anzu was still staring at the screen, but there was a split second where her gaze locked with Yugi's enough to realize he was there.

"I'm not sure." She spoke without looking up, answering a question that Yugi had only thought to ask after she replied. He turned to the window trying to see between the small crowd that had gathered to see the outside world. He had just now noticed that there wasn't one simple sun, but a small clot of light in the sky from which it all seemed to emanate.

"Lights in the sky. . . At night? Sounds like an alien picture ta' me!" Jounouchi's accent ran thick through the bustling noise, but Yugi started to give it serious thought. It did seem vaguely reminiscent of his dreams, but so sudden? Pulling the best he could in his fatigued state at the straps of his backpack, he started down the series of corridors that led to the great artist's domicile.

"I'm here, Yugi-boy. . ."

He stopped to turn to his left, where Pegasus stood staring at the wall in his study. The paintings of Duel Monster characters were strewn on the floor, as if there was a struggle to find something. Pegasus's line of sight could be traced to a landscape that Yugi hadn't seen the night before during Atem and the artist's discussion. There were lights in the sky, and white birds in a swooping formation traveling down towards desert sands.

"That's. . . That's my dream. Those are supposed to be Angels, aren't they?" Yugi was starting to understand the workings of Pegasus more and more. As an artist, he was able to accurately depict the images that he had percieved with the Millenium Eye. And the image that was now hanging on the wall must have been the painting that he was looking for, or maybe even the mess on the floor was a product of madness.

"They are coming, just like they said they would if you interfered. Do you understand?" Pegasus showed no hope or whimsy in his words, he just turned from the painting to lock his cold eyes onto Yugi's gaze. The boy felt on trial, the real eye seemed more cold than the simple decorative orb of gold. He had been looked at like that before by Shadi, who placed a great deal of hope onto the avatar of the Pharaoh locked in his puzzle. The horrid war that had happened before was about to reoccur here.

He couldn't deal with it; at least not at this time. With that feeling of desperation he not only surrendered his form to the king within him, but obligated someone to take control of the situation.

---

"We need to get them to safety, the people. Gather them in a place where they can all be kept track of." Atem was already barking orders out to Pegasus, who just nodded in seemingly frightened respect. Pegasus might have seen what had gone on through the memories of the Pharaoh, of the great war of the Ka spirits that Atem had acted out thousands of years ago. He hadn't done anything of that sort since then, and no monster had achieved a true form from a card except the Egyptian God cards themselves. But Atem understood what dangers were about to assail from the sanctuary in the sky, whose gates would pour forth angels to destroy the king who had done too much for his people.

Pegasus took in all of the commands and dashed out of the room. Atem followed suit slowly, but stopped to gaze at some of the images before he left. Pegasus had been up all evening painting scenes from his mind's eye. There were many depictions of the blood shed of sorcerors and angels. It was then he realized that it wasn't there power of the Millenium Puzzle that had given him those nightmares. It was the combined presence of the Millenium Necklace and Pegasus's Eye that predicted the events at hand. War was coming again.

Atem strode down the hall, but it was cleared out. He must have been fixated on the images for too long, as it seemed that everyone was gone to where ever Pegasus had tucked them. The next course of action would be to go outside, and thus he marched from the depths of the mansion to the main entrance hall and began his home stretch along a stair case that descended towards the front door and the fountain structures that led to the actual gates of the premises.

"Wait! You aren't going anywhere without us!" It was Anzu's voice, and Atem turned to see familiar faces pounding down the lavishly carpeted steps behind him. Jounouchi and Honda were with her, but Seto was completely missing. It made sense, he hadn't been one to assist Yugi or Atem in times of need; not immediately did he mount his horse to come to the rescue.

"Yeah, when's the last time ya' did that anyway?" Jounouchi ruffled rouge locks, teasing the Pharaoh as if he were just the simple boy they knew as a friend. Honda gave Atem similar youthful reception and headed with Jounouchi out the front door. Anzu followed Atem as he too made his way out to the twilight hour day.

It was only as Yugi exited did he hear the familiar current of air that reminded him of the faceless angel king.

"**You were warned not to tempt fate again and disturb our balance.**"

The others were sent into shock as they searched the sky and surrounding area for the source of the voice, but Atem stared directly into the light as best as he could against its harsh glare. Shadow engulfed his view briefly, and then he was pulled completely to the ground by the wind. His friends cried out, but he pulled himself to his feet with the heavy load on his coat the best he could. The Millenium Items all seemed to hum in unison, and Atem could barely focus on the words of the angelic figure before him.

"**It is time for you to understand that he was not joking when you were warned.**" Atem's mind couldn't understand the sentence tenses, as it seemed the same angel king was before him . . . But then it finally added up in his head. This angelic figure had cold, white eyes and a face masked behind silken white cloth. It sounded the same, but it wasn't. Perhaps an heir to the throne just as Atem had not always been the king of Egypt? Other than the face's presence, it was still a great soldier before him clad in glistening armor with a great wing span that shielded the lights in the sky from being completely blinding.

"Don't you understand? Letting others die to maintain a balance is not as just as you claim!" Atem took a valiant step towards the angel, shaking his fist violently. He had full belief in his words, in memory of all the things that Zorc had gotten away with just because his presence was needed to validate a strategic game the universe was playing. The angel's eyes did not waiver, but he turned away and took back to the sky in a hefty vault that shook the earth. Atem watched him sail off back towards the light, which is why he did not notice the heaving mass hurtling towards him.

He hit the ground, but it was a fall forward and not one back. He had been shoved out of the way of the mystical shining ball that was aimed directly for him. A familiar voice coughed in the cloud of dust left by the sphere's' path, and the accent of southern Japan even held thick there. Jounouchi had come to Atem's aide, and now the Pharaoh didn't feel as worried about the competence of his friends in this war. Perhaps, their support was in fact needed.

Tracing the path of the sphere that was to be the death blow, he found himself deadlocked with another cold set of eyes. He wasn't sure how many wings this angelic woman had, as he tried to percieve her form well. Devices that might have been wings seemed to be a lengthy flow of hair. Somewhere in the wind did float a set of wings, but the most important note that Atem made were the three glowing spheres around her. She was an angel, and agent of the king of the heavens sent to kill him.

"The sacred Ka! Release them Yu-" The crying words of an artist were silenced mid-sentence. Atem lurched around to see Pegasus fall from the roof of the mansion into a fountain. He wanted to feel sorry for the fortune teller, but his focus was on the red sphere that flew from Pegasus's general direction back to the woman he had seen. They rotated around her, and obviously she was out to kill with these devices as they seemed under her control. Atem was completely lost to grasp the situation, as he felt completely virgin to these experiences after such a gap in time.

The Ka. . . The spirits sealed in stone of great phantom kings and demon lords, sealed by his father only to have been released time and time again throughout history. . . The inspiration for the Duel Monsters card game. . . And for a time, the guardian of the Pharaoh himself.

Atem reached into the bag behind him and fixed the leather deck box he had at the hilt he had formed back in the time of Seto Kaiba's "Battle City" tournament. He understood the message Pegasus had given before being knocked witless into the fountain. He heard footsteps shuffle behind him as his friends sought to tend to the fallen soothsaye, so Atem had no worries other than this angel woman before him. He knew his deck through and through, and these representations of the Ka spirit of long ago could technically handle an opponent of this kind by the game's rules. Whether his Millenium Items and the powers evoked by his returned memory could handle a battle such as this had yet to be tested.

"_I am the Agent of Creation, Venus. I am the life giver, and the life taker. Good bye, king of man and Earth._"


End file.
